Don't you just love a celebration for a Parkrun milestone?
Retired Kambah public servant Neil Hewitt on the weekend chalked up an amazing 400 Parkruns and 100 volunteer stints, completed as the tail walker for the Tuggeranong Parkrun last Saturday.
Neil was not likely to draw attention to himself - so his mates made sure they did.
They all donned white beards - and ran in them - in a hairy homage to the 64-year-old who started Parkrun 11 years ago.
Mate Chris Gammon, who coincidentally also completed 400 Parkruns on Sunday, said both female and male runners donned the white beards.
"Neil never makes a fuss of himself, so we thought we'd make a fuss of him," Chris said.
Neil was just a little surprised.
"I didn't know that was happening, but I quite enjoyed it, yeah," he said.
The understated Neil felt "good" to reach the milestones. His PB is 23 minutes 19 seconds, which he achieved on a Parkrun in WA.
"The thing I like about it is the atmosphere and the friendliness," he said, of the event.
Public servant Chris Gammon, of Gordon, not only completed his 400th Park run on the same day as Neil, but he's also the same age - 64.
He loved how Parkrun was so inclusive and was something you could take part in easily, even on holidays. His fastest time was 19 minutes 35 seconds. But it was more about the participation - and the coffee after - than the time.
"It's just so friendly and it doesn't matter who you are or what you do, anyone can take part in it," he said.
